Machine for treating fruit.



H. G. GIN AOA.

MACHINE FOR TREATING FRUIT.

APPLICATION FILED APR. 30, 1912.

Patented Apr. 29, 1913.

' a SHEETS-SHEET 1.

H. G. GINAGA.

MACHINE FOR TREATING FRUIT.

APPLICATION FILED APR.30,1912,

' Patented Apr. 29, 1913.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

H. G. GINACA.

MACHINE FOR TREATING FRUIT.

APPLICATION FILED APR. 30. 1912.

Patented Apr. 29, 1913.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 3.

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TED sTATEs PATENT ra ion.

HENRY GABRIEL GINACA, or HONOLULU, TERRITORY or HAWAII, AssIenoR ToHAWAIIAN rINEArPLE COMPANY, Ixrn, or HONOLULU, TERRITORY or IIAWAII, AooRroRATIoII on THE TERRIToRY 0E HAW II.

mAcHI IE EoR TREAT NG FRUIT. j

Specification of Letters Patent. Patented ADI. 29, 1913.

Application filed April 30, 1912. Serial No. 694,081.

To all whom it may concern:

vBe it known that I, HENRY GABRIEL GINAoA, a citizen of the UnitedStates, re-

siding at Honolulu, county of Honolulu, Territory of Hawaii, haveinvented certain new and useful Improvements in Machines for TreatingFruit; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, andexact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilledin the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

This invention relates tomachines for treating fruit, and particularlyfor centering and sizing fruit, such as pineapples. Its object is toprovide a" machineforcentering and sizing the fruit in a rapid,automatic and continuous manner. 1

The invention contemplates a trough or the like on which the pineapplesor other fruit are placed, means for moving the fruit thus placed in arapid manner through a centering device and then forcing the fruitthrough a sizing tube and at the same time remove the rind and outerportion of each fruit in a single piece, these operations tomaticmanner. It also contemplates a sizing knife preferably of the type asdescribed in U. S. Letters Patent No. 1,006,621,

issued Oct. 24, 1911 to L. E. Arnold, although theinvention may be usedin connection with any other suitable means for sizing centered fruit.As the centering attachment contemplated forms the subject matter of aseparate application for patent, filed by me of even date herewith, itwill be but briefly referred to hereinafter. Any other suitablecentering device may be employed; 4

The invention consists in the novel arrangement and combination of partsashore- .inafter described and claimed.

In the accompanying drawings, forming a part of this specification,similar' char acters of reference indicate corresponding parts in theseveral views.

Figure 1 represents a rear end'elevation of a machine for treating fruitembodying my invention? Fi 2 is a longitudinal sectional elevation o therear portion" of the same machine. Fig.- 3 is a side 'elevation of thefront portion of the machine' Fig. 4

is a sectional view on the line A-B of Fig. 2. Fig. 5'is a section onthe line GD of Fig. Fig. 6 is a detail showing in plan one of theattachments for propelling fruit and its connection tothe chain. Fig. 7is a detail showing in plan the parting knife holder and guard.

Referring to the drawings, the bed of the machine consists'of twolongitudinal beams- 1 supported by suitable stands 2 and their rear endsby the front end of the table 3. Guide bars 4 and 5, with distancepieces 6 between same, are secured to the top of each of the beams 1.The front ends 4 of the guide bars 4 are curved downward and rearward asshown inFig. 3. A board 7 or the like is sup orted above each ide bar 5by the bracir inclined upward and outward to form a trough of amplelength to receive a plurality of fruit to be treated. The longitudinalcenters of fruit placed upon the trough practically c oincide with the.longitudinal axis of the machine. An opening -is provided between thelower edges of the boards 7 to permit of the passage ofv means forpropelling fruit longitudinally upon the trough.

The shaft 9 journaled in the boxes 10 bolted to the table 3 is providedwith a sprocket wheel 11 between the boxes 10 and is driven by thesprocket wheel 12.' A

similar sprocket wheel 13 is secured to the shaft 14 adapted to turn inthe bracket boxes 15 fastened below the front ends of each of thebeams 1. A suitable endless chain 16 connects the sprocket wheels 11 and13. The chain 16 is provided at intervals with long pins 17 in lieu ofthe usual rivet v 18. A propelling attachment 19 is pivoted on each pin17 to straddle the chain 16.. Rollers 20 are adapted to turn on the pin17 between the attachment19 and the cotter pin 21 in each end of the pin17. .The at tachment 19 is forked shaped with its two prongs 19" bentapproximately at right angles to its shank 19". A roller 22 is mountedto turn on a. stud 23 on the outside of the'end of each prong 19% Therollers 20 and 22 are adapted to travel between the guide bars 4 and 5.

A centering attachment 24 is secure above the table'3, and the rear endsof the .105

boards 7 are attached to the front end of the frame of this attachment,Figs. 2 and 4. The axis of the attachment 24 coincides with ets 8. Eachboar 7 is 70 fastened upon the table 3 in front of an under the casting26, Fig. 2. I I

In operation, the shaft 9 is revolved, in the direction shown by thearrow in Fig. 2, by means of a chain applied to the sprocket wheel 12,causing the portion of. the chain 16 under the opening between theboards 7 of the trough to travel rearward. The rollers 22 engage thecurved ends 4 of the guide bars 4 and cause the propelling attachment 19to swing on the pin 17 as the chain 16 moves rearward until the shank 19is vertical and the prongs 19 are horizontal, in which position therollers 20 and 22 are between the guide bars' 4 and 5. .Fruit is placedupon" the boards 7 forming the trough in the intervals between thevertical shanks 19 of the propelling attachments 19, and are therebypushed rearward upon said trough, and nearly through the centeringattachment, the shank 19 passing through the space between the tips ofthe fingers of the centering attachment, until theend of the fruit hasengagedthe sizing knife 25, whereupon the rollers 22 leave the rear endof the guide bars 4, and the propelling attachment 19 being no longersupported in a vertical position thereby swings on the pin 17,.theprongs 19 in lowering straddle the sprocket wheel 11 and the shank 19swings forward.

- The chain 16 continuing rearward and downward over the sprocket wheel11 the shank 19 is prevented from striking the parting knife 28 or thesizing knife 25 by the guard 30. The intervals between the propellingattachment-s 19 are made suflicient to permit each of these attachmentsto swing as described in leaving the fruit without its shank l9 engagingthe next succeeding fruit. The fruit which has been centered in thecentering attachment and entered in the sizing knife is now pushedrearward by the succeeding fruit, the sized fruit passing throu h thecasting 26 and deflected by the plate 2 is discharged from the bottom ofsaid casting in a direction at right angles to the axis of the machine.In the meantime the rind and outer portion of the fruit has been partedby the knife 28 and has been pushed rearward by similar outer portionsof succeeding fruit and is discharged in one piece from'the rear of thetop of the casting 26. It will now be noted that the fruit is centeredand sized and the 2. A machine for treating fruit comprising, a bedsuitably supported, a sprocket wheel under each end of the bed, anendless chain over these sprockets, guide bars above the bed, a troughover the guide bars, propelling attachments pivoted at intervals to thechain, a sizing knife, and a centering device between the trough and thesizing knife.

3. A machine for treating fruit comprising, a bed suit-ably supported,two sprocket wheels, an endless chain over these wheels, propellingattachments pivoted to the chain, guide bars, a trough, a sizing knife,and a knife for parting the rind.

4. A machine for treating fruit comprising, a bed, two sprocket wheels,an endless chain with propelling attachments pivoted to same atintervals, a sizing knife, a trough,

guide bars, a centering device, and a kn fe for parting the rind.

5. In a machine for treating fruit, a sizing knife, and means operatingin one direction only to force the fruit into the sizing knife, saidmeans comprising hinged pushing elements adapted to abut the rear of thefruit.

6. In a machine for-treating fruit, a centering device, a sizing tube,and means operating in one direction only for forcingfruit through thecentering device and into the sizing tube, said means comprising hingedpushingelements adapted to abut the rear of the fruit only.

7. In a machine for treating fruit, means operating in one directiononly for pro elling fruit and for forcing same throug a centering deviceand into a sizing knife, and a knife for parting the rind.

8. In amachine for treating fruit, a sizing,knife,'a centering device, atrough, an opening in the bottom of the trough guide bars under thetrough, an endless chaln, and a plurality of attachments hinged atintervals to the chain and operating through said opening and guided bysaid guide bars for propelling fruit longitudinally upon the trough, andthrough said centering device and into the sizing knife.

9. In a machine for treating fruit, a sizattachments hinged at intervalsto said chain,

and means for causing the attachments to project upward through saidopening for the purpose of propelling fruit through said centeringdevice and into the sizing knife.

10. In a machine for treati fruit, a trough, an opening in the troug achain operating below the opening, a plurality of attachments pivoted atintervals to said chain, a sizing knife, means for causing theattachments operating through said opening to propel fruit on the troughand to enter the fruit in the sizing knife.

11. In a machine for treating fruit, a trough, an opening in the trough,a chain operating below the opening, a plurality of attachments pivotedat intervals to said chain, a sizing knife, means for causing saidattachments to propel fruit on the trough and enter same in the sizingknife, and then cease propelling the fruit while the chain is in motion.

12. In a machine for treating fruit, a siz-- ing tube, and a sizingknife carried thereby, a portion of said tube being deflected downwardlyto deliver the fruit at right angles to the axis ofthe sizing tube.

13. In a machine for treatin fruit, a sizing knife, means for forcingruit through said knife, means for guidingl the sized fruit anddischarging same at rig t angles to the sizing knife, means for partingthe rind, and means for guiding the rind and outer portion of the fruit.

14:. In a machine for treatin fruit, a centering device comprising a ameprovided with a gap therein, fruit engaging fingers pointing in the samedirection within the frame, and means projecting laterally into said gapfor propelling fruit through '40 said attachment.

15. In a machine for treating fruit, a sizing knife, a centering devicecomprising a frame provided with a gap, fruit engaging fingers pointingin the same direction within the frame, and means projecting laterallyinto said gap for propelling fruitthrough said attachment and into thesizing knife.

In testimony whereof I affix my signature,

in presence of two witnesses.

HENRY GRIEL GINACA. Witnesses:

ROBT. J. PRATT, ARTHUR F. EWART.

